Hair holder

ABSTRACT

A hair holder with firm holding effect is provided. The hair holder includes a ring body having an inner boundary defining an inner hole for allowing hair to go through. The hair holder further includes a plurality of posts, connected to the ring body, to be stuck into the hair to fasten the hair going though the inner hole of the ring body.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

The present application is a nonprovisional application claiming benefitfrom a prior-filed provisional application bearing a Ser. No. 62/728,106and filed Sep. 7, 2018, the entity of which is incorporated herein forreference.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present disclosure relates to a hair holder, and more particularlyto a hair holder with firm holding effect.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The conventional hair holder, e.g. ponytailer, is a ring-shaped objectwith little elasticity. By wrapping the ponytailer around hair, aspecific hairstyle can be secured and held. For fastening a piece ofhair or a tress, the ponytailer is adapted as several smaller loops.However, the size of the smaller loops may be unfit for a thick hairbecause the ponytailer with any loop number is either too tight or tooloose. Furthermore, the elasticity of the hair holder is easily damagedafter certain pulls, or even breaks to cause waste. Another disadvantageis that the ponytailer usually leaves marks or dents on the hair, maybedamage hair quality. Therefore, the holding effect of the conventionalhair holder is unsatisfactory.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

An aspect of the present disclosure provides a hair holder. The hairholder includes a ring body having an inner boundary defining an innerhole for allowing hair to go through. The hair holder further includes aplurality of posts, connected to the ring body, to be stuck into thehair to fasten the hair going though the inner hole of the ring body.

In an embodiment, the ring body is a coil ring body having a continuousspiral structure which includes a plurality of circles connectedend-to-end in series. The posts are arranged on the ring body andlocated inside at least one of the circles and/or outside at least oneof the circles and/or between any two adjacent circles.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The above objectives and advantages of the present invention will becomemore readily apparent to those ordinarily skilled in the art afterreviewing the following detailed description and accompanying drawings,in which:

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram illustrating a ponytailer according to anembodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram illustrating a ponytailer according toanother embodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG. 3A is a schematic diagram showing the use of the ponytailer with anupdo stick;

FIG. 3B is a schematic diagram showing a pull through stick used withthe ponytailer of the present disclosure;

FIG. 4A is a schematic diagram illustrating a ponytailer according to afurther embodiment of the present disclosure;

FIGS. 4B˜4D are schematic diagrams showing another use of the ponytailerof FIG. 4A;

FIGS. 5A and 5B are schematic diagrams illustrating applications of theponytailer according to the present disclosure;

FIG. 6 is a schematic diagram illustrating a further embodiment of theponytailer according to the present disclosure;

FIG. 7 is a schematic diagram illustrating a further embodiment of theponytailer according to the present disclosure; and

FIGS. 8A˜8G are schematic diagram illustrating embodiments of coil hairties according to the present disclosure.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

The present invention will now be described more specifically withreference to the following embodiments. It is to be noted that thefollowing descriptions of preferred embodiments of this invention arepresented herein for purpose of illustration and description only. It isnot intended to be exhaustive or to be limited to the precise formdisclosed.

In the description, a ponytailer is taken as an example for illustrationpurpose. However, the related description can be applied to varioustypes of hair holder, e.g. hair tie, coil hair tie, hair band, hairelastic, hair knick knacks, head band, hair wrap. Please refer to FIG.1, a schematic diagram illustrating a ponytailer according to anembodiment of the present disclosure. The ponytailer 1 includes a ringbody 11 and a plurality of spaced posts (protruding parts, teeth orpins) 12. The posts 12 may be equally spaced or not according to thedesign and shape of the ring body 11. Furthermore, the posts 12 may beformed of equal length or varied lengths (FIG. 2). The width of eachpost 12 and the number of the posts 12 may be determined according toreal practice and are not limited herein. One end 121 of each post 12 isconnected to an inner boundary 111 of the ring body 11, and the otherend 122 extends inwards, e.g. toward the center of the ring body 11. Thering body 11 may be made of a rigid material or a flexible material withor without elasticity. Similarly, the posts 12 may be made of a rigidmaterial or a flexible material. The ring body 11 and the posts 12 maybe made of the same material and integrally formed. In anotherembodiment, the posts 12 are softer or more rigid than the ring body 11.Thus, the posts 12 may be connected to the ring body 11 by welding orother processing when the posts 12 are made of thermoplastic material.

The ponytailer 1 fastens hair by confining a bundle of hair inside thering body 11 and sticking the posts 12 into the bundle of hair. Theposts 12 with different extending directions can firmly holding thebundle of hair. Since the ponytailer 1 is not twisted to provide smallermulti-loops, the size (circumference) should be designed tosubstantially fit or be slightly larger than the circumference of thebundle of hair to be fastened. In one design, each post 12 has uniformwidth along its own extending direction. In another design, the end 122near the center of the ring body 11 is sharper than the end 121connected to the ring body 11. To prevent from hurting finger or scalp,the end 122 is a round end, or a tiny beam (not shown) is integrallyformed on the end 122 or detachably coupled to the end 122. The shape ofthe posts 12 is not limited to this embodiment. For example, protrudingspots (not shown) may be arranged on surfaces of the posts 12, or smallhook structures (not shown) may be formed at the end 122 to increaseforce of friction between the hair and the posts 12.

Please refer to FIG. 3A, a schematic diagram showing the use of theponytailer with an updo stick. Since the size of the ponytailer 1substantially fits the circumference of the bundle of hair to befastened, another tool could be provided to pass the bundle of hairthrough the ponytailer 1. For example, an adjustable updo stick 30 isused to guide the bundle of hair 35 to go through the inner hole 13defined by the inner boundary 111 of the ring body 11 of the ponytailer1 along a direction 37 (e.g. central axis of the ring body 11), and thenthe updo stick 30 is removed and the gripped bundle of hair 35 fills theinner hole 13 of the ponytailer 1 adaptively. Another type of pullthrough stick 31 having a hook 311 at one end is shown in FIG. 3B. Thebundle of hair to be fastened is held within the hook 311 and then goesthrough the inner hole 13 of the ponytailer 1. It is to be noted thatthe present disclosure does not limit the guiding tool cooperating withthe ponytailer 1. It is only required that the guiding tool can catchthe bundle of hair and guide the caught hair bundle to go through theinner hole of the hair holder along a designated direction.

According to the present disclosure, the ponytailer 1 can providevarious visual effects. In an embodiment, at least the ring body 11 ofthe ponytailer 1 is made of a transparent material so that theponytailer 1 put on hair is invisible from a certain distance. Inanother embodiment, the ring body 11 of the ponytailer 1 may be coatedwith bright color and/or decorated with various kinds of accessories(not shown) to serve as a hair jewelry. Such modifications are includedin the present disclosure.

Please refer to FIG. 4A, a schematic diagram illustrating a ponytaileraccording to another embodiment of the present disclosure. The shape ofthe ring body 11 of the ponytailer 1 is adjustable. To achieve thispurpose, a soft metal wire 40 is embedded in the ring body 11 of theponytailer 1. The user may press or pull the ring body 11 atcorresponding positions to change the shape of the ring body 11 asdesired before or after the bundle of hair goes through the ponytailer1. After removing the shaping force 45 exerted on the ring body 11, thering body 11 can remain its shape due to specific rigidity of the metalwire 40 supporting the ring body 11 until a next exerted shaping force.According to this concept, the size of the ponytailer 1 is alsoadjustable. For example, after the bundle of hair is guided to gothrough the ring body 11 and the hair bundle is still gripped tightly inone hand, the user can press points 115 and 116 on the ring body 11together, or even twist around the contact points 115 and 116, to reducethe hole size. Then, the user relinquishes her grip on the bundle ofhair as the hole size is fixed. The number/position of the contactpoints and the press direction are not limited, and thus the ring body11 can have varied shapes in response to the press force.

FIGS. 4B˜4D shows another application of the ponytailer 1. The ring body11 is bendable and foldable to be shaped as desired. For example, afterthe hair bundle is held in the inner hole 13, two ends 47, 48 of thering body 11 are pulled back together along a direction 461 (FIG. 4B) sothat the ring body 11 is bent at bent portions 471, 481. The ring body11 can remain its folded form (FIG. 4C) due to specific rigidity of themetal wire 40 supporting the ring body 11 until a next exerted shapingforce. In another embodiment, one end 47 is folded backward along adirection 461 and the other end 48 is folded forward along a direction462 (FIG. 4B) to provide another folding effect (FIG. 4D). According tothe description, the ring body 11 could be bent at any desired bentportions 117 with any bent direction as descried. Since the ring body 11is bendable, foldable, twistable and shapeable, the bundle of hairconfined in the ring body 11 could also show a variety of patterns. Thereshaping of the ponytailer 1 could be derived from the abovedescription, and no further elaboration about the shaping patterns isgiven.

Please refer to FIG. 5A and FIG. 5B illustrating applications of theponytailer according to the present disclosure. As shown in FIG. 5A, astar hair accessory is provided by integrated the ponytailer 1 into astar object 51. A through hole 510 is formed in the star object 51 anddefined by an internal wall 511. The through hole 510 may has across-section of any proper shape, e.g. circle, oval, a conformal shapeof the object 51. The outer boundary 112 of the ring body 11 iscompletely or partially attached to the internal wall 511 to fix theponytailer 1 into the star object 51, or the ring body 11 is integrallyformed with the star object 51 of the same material. The star object maybe modified to be in any other popular shape or form to provideparticular impression or feeling. FIG. 5B shows another example. Twohalves of a bow object 52 are respectively connected to the ring body 11at two sides to provide a bow hair accessory. According to the concept,the object 52 in any popular shape or form may be a combination of atleast two parts, which are connected to different portions of the ringbody 11, with consideration of load bearing and weight balance.

Please refer to FIG. 6 showing a variant of the ponytailer. Theponytailer 6 includes a thick ring body 61 and a plurality of tiny posts62. An inner hole 63 is defined by the inner boundary 611 of the ringbody 61. The tiny posts 62 are arranged on the inner surface 611 of thering body 61 and distributed in any possible pattern, in one-dimensionalarrangement or two-dimensional arrangement. In another embodiment, thetiny posts 62 may be omitted if the material of the thick ring body 61can provide enough fastening or holding effect. Under this condition,the inner surface 611 of the ring body 61 may be roughened to provideequivalent holding effect. The roughness of the ring body 61 isdetermined according to the material of the ring body 61. The materialsand modifications described in the above embodiments are also applicableto the ponytailer 6.

Please refer to FIG. 7 showing another variant of the ponytailer. Theponytailer 7 includes an open ring body 71, instead of a closed ringbody, and a plurality of spaced posts (protruding parts, teeth or pins)72. Please refer to the above embodiments for the arrangement andfunction of the posts 72, and similar description is not repetitivelygiven here. Two coupling means 711 are formed at two ends of the openring body 71 to connect the two ends together in a close state ordisconnect the two ends from each other in an open state. The couplingmeans 711 may be provided in any fastening form, e.g. hooks, hook andeye, snap fastener, knot button fastener (frog fastener), twistfastener, resilient gripping member, hinge and latch clasp, hingedclasp, and the present disclosure is not limited to these. To wear theponytailer 7, the bundle of hair to be fastened is put into the ringbody 71 in the open state. More hair can be put into space defined inthe ring body 71 in the open state than that in the closed state becauseof the elasticity of the ring body 71. Then, the coupling means 711 arepressed together and coupled (connected) to each other to close the ringbody 71, so that the bundle of hair is well fastened by the ponytailer7. No auxiliary tool such as a pull through stick is needed to guide thebundle of hair in this case, and it is easy to open or close the ringbody 71, even by a single hand.

Further, hair holders of a specific type according to the presentdisclosure, i.e. coil hair ties, are illustrated in FIGS. 8A˜8G. Thecoil hair tie 8 includes a coil ring body 81 and a plurality of posts 82a, 82 b, 82 c, 82 d, 82 e, 82 f or 82 g arranged at different portionsof the coil ring body 81. The coil ring body 81 has an inner boundary811 defining an inner hole 83 and an outer boundary 812 opposite to theinner boundary 811. The coil ring body 81 has a continuous spiralstructure in which a plurality of circles 810 are connected end-to-endin series. The continuous spiral structure can provide a restoring forcewhile being stretched so as to form an elastic structure to fasten hair.In other words, the spiral structure becomes longer with greater radiusand has a lower coil density in response to a tensile force, andrestores to its normal length and has a greater coil density due to theelasticity of the spiral structure while removing the tensile force.

There is variation in arrangement of the posts 82 a˜82 g in FIGS. 8A˜8GIn FIG. 8A, long posts 82 a are provided at the inner boundary 811 ofthe coil ring body 81 and extend inwards (i.e. toward the center of thecoil ring body 81). In FIG. 8B, long posts 82 b are provided at theouter boundary 812 of the coil ring body 81 and extend outwards (i.e.away from the center of the coil ring body 81). In FIG. 8C, tiny posts82 c are provided inside the circles 810 of the coil ring body 81. InFIGS. 8D˜8F, tiny posts 82 d˜82 f are provided outside the circles 810of the coil ring body 81. For example, the tiny posts 82 d˜82 f may belocated at the inner boundary 811 (FIG. 8D) and/or located at the outerboundary 812 (FIG. 8E) and/or located between the inner boundary 811 andthe outer boundary 812 (FIG. 8F). In FIG. 8G tiny posts 82 g areprovided between any two circles 810 of the coil ring body 81. It is tobe noted that the posts 82 a˜82 g may be arranged at at least one cycle810, arranged at few cycles 810, arranged at any cycle 810 or arrangedat all of the cycles 810. The number of the posts 82 a˜82 g is notlimited to the embodiments. Further, it is to be noted that the coilhair tie 8 may have mixed-size posts arranged at different positions ofthe circles 810 of the coil ring body 81. In other words, the posts 82a˜82 g in different embodiments may be arbitrarily selected and combinedinto new configurations. The posts 82 a˜82 g in the embodiments areprovided for hair-fixing and/or decorative purposes as described above.Therefore, the materials of the posts 82 a˜82 g may vary according tothe function themselves. The material of the posts 82 a˜82 g may besofter or more rigid than that of the coil ring body 81 to meetrequirements. For example, the posts 82 a in FIG. 8A are made ofslightly flexible material; the posts 82 b in FIG. 8B are made of muchsoft material, e.g. fiber; and the posts 82 c˜82 g are made of rigid orelastic material. The examples are given for illustration purposes, butnot intended to limit the scope of the present invention. In anotherembodiment, the posts 82 a˜82 g (e.g. made of silicone rubber) may beintegrally formed with the coil ring body 81 to simplify themanufacturing process.

The hair holder in each of the above embodiments is applicable to manyhairstyles, e.g. ponytail, pigtails, braids, bunches. Increasedflexibility is achieved because the hair holder can fit all hair, nomatter thin or thick. Furthermore, the hair holder may be used aroundhair near scalp or at any portion between the head and the hair endsdepending on preferred look. It is easy to put on or take off the hairholder without improperly pulling the hair. Some research tells thatwhen hair is put in a tight bun or ponytail, that will pull the nervesin the scalp. The pulling of the nerves will activate the sensory nerveseven more, and result in the headache. The hair holder of the presentdisclosure does not hold hair in a tight manner, and can solve thisproblem.

In conclusion, the present disclosure provides a hair holder showingvariety and suitable for many hairstyles. The design can be easilyintegrated with many types of hair accessories. Because the hair holdercan last multiple uses without loosing elasticity or being broken, thehair holder will greatly eliminate the waste resulting from theconventional nylon elastic which sustains only one or few uses.Furthermore, the hair holder does not cause headache and is worthpopularizing.

While the invention has been described in terms of what is presentlyconsidered to be the most practical and preferred embodiments, it is tobe understood that the invention needs not be limited to the disclosedembodiments. On the contrary, it is intended to cover variousmodifications and similar arrangements included within the spirit andscope of the appended claims which are to be accorded with the broadestinterpretation so as to encompass all such modifications and similarstructures.

What is claimed is:
 1. A hair holder, comprising: a ring body having aninner boundary defining an inner hole for allowing hair to go through;and a plurality of posts, connected to the ring body, to be stuck intothe hair to fasten the hair going though the inner hole of the ringbody.
 2. The hair holder according to claim 1, wherein the ring body isa coil ring body having a continuous spiral structure comprising aplurality of circles connected end-to-end in series.
 3. The hair holderaccording to claim 2, wherein the posts are formed on the ring body andlocated inside at least one of the circles.
 4. The hair holder accordingto claim 2, wherein the posts are formed on the ring body and locatedoutside at least one of the circles.
 5. The hair holder according toclaim 2, wherein the posts are formed on the ring body and locatedbetween any two adjacent circles.
 6. The hair holder according to claim2, wherein the posts are formed on the ring body and located inside atleast one of the circles and/or outside at least one of the circlesand/or between any two adjacent circles.
 7. The hair holder according toclaim 1, wherein the posts are formed of equal length or varied lengths.8. The hair holder according to claim 1, wherein the ring body is madeof a rigid material or a flexible material.
 9. The hair holder accordingto claim 8, wherein a material of the posts is softer than a material ofthe ring body.
 10. The hair holder according to claim 8, wherein amaterial of the posts is more rigid than a material of the ring body.11. The hair holder according to claim 8, wherein the posts and the ringbody are made of the same material and integrally formed.
 12. The hairholder according to claim 1, wherein a first end of at least one of theposts is connected to the inner boundary of the ring body, and a secondend of the at least one post extends inwards.
 13. The hair holderaccording to claim 12, wherein the second end of the at least one postis a round end or a beam is formed on the second end.
 14. The hairholder according to claim 1, wherein a first end of at least one of theposts is connected to an outer boundary opposite to the inner boundaryof the ring body, and a second end of the at least one post extendsoutwards.
 15. The hair holder according to claim 1, wherein a soft metalwire is embedded in the ring body for remaining a shape of the ring bodyafter the ring body is reshaped in response to a shaping force exertedon the ring body.
 16. The hair holder according to claim 15, wherein thering body is reshaped in response to the shaping force for pressing,folding, bending and/or twisting the ring body.
 17. The hair holderaccording to claim 1, wherein the hair holder further comprises adecorative object having an internal wall defining a through hole, thering body being disposed in the through hole and completely or partiallyattached to the internal wall of the decorative object.
 18. The hairholder according to claim 1, wherein the hair holder further comprisesat least a decorative part connected to the ring body.
 19. The hairholder according to claim 1, wherein the ring body is a closed ringbody.
 20. The hair holder according to claim 1, wherein the ring body isan open ring body, and two coupling means are formed at two ends of theopen ring body to connect the two ends of the open ring body together ina close state or disconnect the two ends of the open ring body from eachother in an open state.